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Pierre Belmondo
French |title = Anti-Gravity Technology pioneer Executive Chairman of the F5000 Anti-Gravity Racing Commission (2085-2100s) Founder of the Belmondo Foundation |relative = Natasha Belmondo (great-great-granddaughter) }} :"A ball bounces; A pin drops; A man falls. Gravity is the glue which binds us to our planet. We are about to apply the solvent which will free our species forever." – Pierre Belmondo, 2035 Pierre Belmondo (17 January 2004 - 8 June 2127) was a pioneer of the anti-gravity technology, as well as the former Executive Director of the F5000 Anti-Gravity Racing Commission. According to the in-game historical accounts, he is known as the "Father of Anti-Gravity". Belmondo himself coordinated and piloted the first flight in an anti-gravity ship in 2035. To combat the increasing costs of the development of AG technology, he founded Anti-Gravity Systems in 2040 and installed himself as its Director. In the mid-2040s, he expressed the idea of an international racing championship for AG craft. This manifested into the Anti-Gravity Racing Championships in 2048. Despite his role of founding the sport, Belmondo didn't play a major role in the organization of the sport before he became the Executive Chairman of the F3600 Anti-Gravity Race Commission in 2080. It was during his time as Executive Chairman where he overhauled the sport to both F5000 and F7200 specification and introduced controversial craft-destroying weaponry to the sport. Early Life Belmondo was born on 17 January 2004 in the Poitou-Charentes region of southwestern France. He spent his childhood here, as well. Belmondo acquired his desire to develop anti-gravity technology at a young age. He recalled an incident where he fell from his father's bookcase trying to retrieve a book. From that experience, he realized his ambition to devote his life to gravitational physics and, eventually, break the gravity of the Earth. As such, he spent his spare time studying the laws of physics and other related works. Although he was classified as an 'average' student in school, his extracurricular studies made him a virtual expert on physics, to such an extent that when he applied for entry into the Federal European University, the staff commented "...he is so far ahead of any member of staff, we are all tempted to resign and let him take over right away." Foundation for European Anti-Gravity Reseach In 2021, Belmondo dropped out of the university to join the Foundation for European Anti-Gravity Reseach – the European member of the World Anti-Gravity Research Congress – on a permanent basis. This catapulted the progress done by the Foundation to such an extent that Belmondo was promoted to the position of Director in 2024, when Belmondo was 20 years of age. Later that year, the World Techonology Symposium withdrew their support from the Congress and ordered all anti-gravity research operations to cease. Although it was thought that this was because of evidence suggesting the infeasibility of the technology, Belmondo and other pioneers believed that the Symposium and its supporting governments would have too much to lose if anti-gravity technology was implemented. Regardless, Belmondo and his research team continued in secret. In 2034, Belmondo's team had created a prototype craft coupled with an anti-gravity generator. When the governments of the world got word of this development, they initiated a propaganda smear campaign, undermining their research, and claimed they were using governments and other funds for their own pleasures. On 14 April 2035, Belmondo proved everyone wrong when he succesfully piloted the first anti-gravity craft, the Nx1000, in the Nevada desert. Within months, the governments of the world had implemented the new technology, leading the World Technology Symposium to fold in 2037. Anti-Gravity Systems (2040 to 2060s) To cover the shortage of funds and address the social concerns of anti-gravity technology, Belmondo founded Anti-Gravity Systems in 2040 as the commercial division of the Foundation. The rise of AG Systems and the protection of rights to anti-gravity technology developed Belmondo's business skills in this new stage of his career. As such, he remained with AG Systems even after the company moved to Japan when the Foundation folded. It was during his time with AG Systems when he proposed other ways to bring humanity together around his technology, namely a racing competition. With assistance from the Brazilian company Pir-hana, the Anti-Gravity Federation was founded in 2044 to establish an AG racing league by 2048. However, Belmondo turned down the role as the Commission's Executive Chairman, preferring to develop an AG Systems craft for the new league, despite the fact that he played an advisory role in the organisation of the sport in its formative years. He invited popular datacast celebrity Dirk Breakwater to run the Commission. By the 2060s, Belmondo decided to leave AG Systems and later became a member of the Commission, concerned about the influence of money in the sport. He also had fears that there was a conspiracy against AG racing, and that there was an unscrupulous party desiring to take control of the sport. Executive Director of the F3600/F5000 Commission His fears came true in 2080, when Chuck Hoffman, F3600 Executive Director and Belmondo's colleague, was assassinated before the start of the 2080 season in Canada. The season was subsequently cancelled. Belmondo installed himself as Executive Director, and saw it as a favor to his late friend to continue the tradition they had started, and quickly outmaneuvered those associated with Hoffman's murder. Unafraid of change, Belmondo evolved the F3600 league to F5000 specification for the 2085 season. This move allowed for more destructive weapons, capable of destroying craft. Although he believed this was the natural evolution of his ideals, he was criticized for 'betraying' the pure AG competition. Belmondo resigned as the Executive Director in the early 2100s. Later Life and Death Shortly after his resignation, Belmondo found out that the people who had conspired to overthrow the Commission also had plans to alter the sport should they take control of it. In response to this, he founded the Belmondo Foundation to enforce the purity of AG racing and his vision of using AG technology to benefit mankind. Belmondo passed away on 8 June 2127, aged 123. A few hours before, he was able to witness the birth of his great-great-granddaughter, Natasha. Legacy His great-great-granddaughter, Natasha Belmondo, would grow up to be one of the best pilots in the F9000 league, winning the 2158 championship with Auricom, before joining Xios and claiming many for them. However, she also strongly criticized the changes done to the league by the director of the F9000 International Federation of Anti-Gravity Racing since 2132, revealed to be the Overtel Corporation datacast company, who had been fighting for control of the sport beforehand. Natasha was relieved when allegations of corruption and illegal activities against Overtel had surfaced in 2170. The Belmondo Foundation, with Natasha as Executive Chairwoman, restarted professional AG racing in 2197 with the FX300 League. This league saw a return to traditional AG racing not seen since Pierre's term as Executive Director. Category:People